War Games
by KiahTrickster
Summary: Set in the past, that is the one before Terra Nova, Taylor returns from deployment only to be assigned a new mission with high stakes. He takes only his most trusted men; and Wash. Its Army vs Psychops, and someone has been playing a very dangerous game on the government's dime. Will they be too late or will they succeed at all? Rating subject to change due to violence.
1. Chapter 1

This story is set in Taylor and Wash's past, well before Terra Nova and before Somalia. Ayani is alive, and so is Wash's grandmother for the purpose of this story.

Disclaimer: I write for fun, all characters belong to respective writers and producers, no copyright infringement intended.

 **War Games**

They had been off base for nearly eighteen months, he was eager to report in and head home; he had been away from his family for a long time. His men had been given leave only a few hours ago after they landed and stowed their gear. It had been a long and bloody posting on the wire, and while they were supposedly at peace on the continent sparks were already flying in Somalia; that would likely be their next post.

"Taylor." He turned and nodded as his CO approached, he had known the man a long time and while he reported to him, he also counted him a friend; his body came to attention on reflex.

"Philbrick." General Philbrick had once been his mentor until they went different paths in the military. Taylor choose special forces, if he was going to serve his country he was going to do it with his men at his back, while Philbrick went political and straight up the chain of command. "You received my reports, do I need to clarify any details?"

"No." The man clapped him on the back and shook his head. "I know you want to get home, Ayani will want you there. Your paperwork is in order, I've got a small assignment for you while you are home. We've a security issue."

"Of what sort?" Security was not his forte, he generally didn't guard much beyond his own camp; he led the attacks against what was protected.

"Don't worry, it plays to your strengths." His CO smirked as they headed back towards his office. When the door was secured and a jamming sequence had been applied the man sat behind his desk and slid a file over to him. "Pick a few of your best go with you; I leave the team selection up to you."

Opening it he read for a time, once and then a second time to commit the details to memory. "We've a traitor in psychops I take it."

"Or so they say. It has occurred to me that this is just because they want to test their security measures. But if you find that experiment we've got a problem." Philbrick sighed, and holding out a hand for the file again. "I don't need details, you should know standard ops is nonlethal arms for security personnel. If you succeed bring me the experiment, if not I'll hear."

"You'll be bailing us out." The file was secured and he turned to press his thumb to the screen; acknowledging that he had received the orders.

"I'd be disappointed Taylor." They rose, Taylor pulled himself to attention before taking his leave.

Moving quickly through the base he looked for any members of his unit remaining; he knew the ones he wanted. He spotted the youngest, still in her gear and waiting for the transport, likely one heading west; cutting through people he caught her before she boarded. Wash was a soldier to the bone and if he called her back she would come but it wasn't fair; better delay leave a few more days than get half way home and having to turn around.

"Wash." Her head turned, catching his voice and looking for him. "Hold up."

"Sir." She came to attention as he stopped in front of her.

"Change of plans, we're back up. I've got to round up a couple more and book a sec-con; check into barracks for the night." Even as he spoke he scanned the terminal, looking for the other three he wanted for the op.

"Yes Sir." Ever composed the only tell he saw was that her eyes went flat; for just a moment she had been relaxed, thinking about going home.

"You know where Cairns or Regan are?" He knew where the last man would be; he lived on base.

"Have you checked the dives just off base?" There was laughter in her voice though her face remained blank.

"Not yet." Both men were good soldiers and would go entire deployments without drinking but from the moment they were on leave until their next orders were issued they did not spend more than a moment sober. It was how some men dealt with what they had to do in battle, what they saw and survived. And given their posting their leaves never lasted very long.

Wash shouldered her pack and headed out of the terminal as he headed over to local transports and took one off base to find his men. During the short ride he requisitioned a sec-con, a secure conference room where they would plan the war game. This time it was army special ops versus psychops security and in a way it was fitting.

Psychops was always shipping over new weaponry to use, and half the time it was more of a problem than a help. They loved to come up with new weapons but were slow to come up with defenses against the ones used against the soldiers in the field. On this last deployment they'd seen factions of the Russo Chinese using nerve gases, a less sophisticated psychops tactic that had backfired almost as often as it succeeded; shifting winds had worked against them almost as often as it worked in their favor.

The nasty gas had rolled through their camp more than once, could have been devastating if a wind change hadn't knocked out the camp that had released it. Some how he anticipated similar tactics with this op, no matter what psychops claimed their security was; there would be surprises.

Striding off the transport and into the first dive he saw he found his men cozied up to the bar, and mostly sober. With quick reflexes he took the shot still sitting in front of Cairns he downed it himself as both men turned itching for a fight; surprise evident in their eyes. "You're back on the roll. Both of you."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

His team sat around the war table, their newest man was showing Wash photos of his little girl, clearly he had enjoyed his evening at home. The other two were wallowing in the fact they were sober and their leave had been delayed. These four were his best men, each with their own strengths and specialties. Now waiting for him to begin. This was different than anything they had taken on, they were looking for a traitor within the ranks of the military they served; on whose orders they risked their lives.

Taylor knew that wouldn't sit well with any of the soldiers around this table. They spent months away from their families, and years not knowing whether they would survive until retirement. To defend their country and the limited resources they had left against threats foreign and domestic; now internal.

Psych Ops was an annoying division of their military, they were not soldiers or support staff; they were scientists with soldiers as their guinea pigs. Not well liked by any other branch of military but unescapable for them.

"Listen up." As he spoke he pressed his palm to the scanner, opening the plan he had drawn up last night. The holo came to life and projected an image of their base. "Our mission is in this building. We are looking for one experiment; a certain type of lab."

At least they had one advantage, this was their home and they could approach undetected and if they succeeded could disappear just as easily. He wanted to strike just before shift change, guards would be tired and within the base they would expect to be secure; base security would see to that.

"The problem will be everything within the building would be secured by section and likely by lab. We have to go in quiet and invisible." Tapping his fingers on the building to focus the holo, bringing up the building plans beside it. Beginning to explain how they would do it, the team listened carefully.

Guzman would guard their access point, Cairns and Regan would handle surveillance. He would take Wash with him inside, she was young but she was smart and she was a warrior to the bone; he had learned from her first mission with his unit that Washington didn't know how to give up. Plus her size would give her an advantage he wouldn't have; they were going to travel through building's air filtration system.

Cairns and Regan would track and guide them through the building; warning them of security guards and other hazards. But after that it was up to them to complete a comprehensive search and find their target.

Wash rose and moved close to plans, he watched her scan the maze of vents they would crawl through. Getting in was one thing, getting out would be another. "Any questions?"

"If we fail?" Guzman asked.

"Then Wash and I will spend some time in a brig; you three get clear and inform Philbrick." He wasn't so much worried about failing but who would be tipped off if their attempt failed.

Failure would give time for the traitor to clear their lab and take the research and leave. That and they may end up on the business end of new sonic pistols which was never a pleasant experience.

"We meet at oh four hundred in the morning." He dismissed them, waiting as all the men filed out; he stopped Wash. "If we're arrested it will not go on your record, if you have an issue with being an entrant I need to know now."

"It is sanctioned?"

He nodded and brown eyes met his, cool and hard. "Then I follow orders."

"Good Ayani wants to see you before we ship out again." He had expected nothing else, but all the same he had to ask. There was likely to be some hostility whether they won or lost and it would come out if they exposed a traitor, some would not like that they looked for traitors within the base or exposed them; as an enlisted soldier she would bear the brunt of it.

Wash was only twenty three, and weighed one twenty soaking wet; but she put many men to shame. There were men he could take but his first thought had been Wash, he'd got a few of his men behind him in pestering her to take the officer's training but as of yet she had no interest.

She was proud to be a medic for their unit, and proud to do it as a woman. But someday she had to open her eyes up to more because everyone who served with her knew she could do it. The army was loosing soldiers at an alarming rate; they needed young officers to step up and lead them.

The land wars were not just financially expensive but as they fought to defend the domes of uncontaminated land they had; which provided food sources for nearly all of the country. They stood firmly with the allied nations against the Russo Chinese who had slowly but steadily been claiming land since their nations merged nearly a century again. If they lost on the continent or in the Oceanic region the States and what remained of Canada would be next.

After the water wars years before they knew what is was for the allied nations to turn on each other; the bombs dropped in those wars had ironically contaminated huge swaths of land and the precious water they fought over. After that war the nuclear bombs were banned, but Psych Ops was born as disabling the enemies soldiers became the main goal; and soon every military had their own division. There were rumors that the States had something more to defend, that they had found a way to renew the nation but as of yet it was all rumor.

Ayani tried hard to forge a friendship with his soldier. His wife did not understand how Wash lived, that she was as much a part of his unit as any man could be. The two women were very different, Ayani would never survive as Wash did but Wash would hate his wife's life.

He left her at the barracks and headed home, his son wrapped around him almost as soon as he was through the door. For a few hours he could put the job aside and just be with his son. It was hard to keep up with Lucas, he spent months at a time away from him and now that Lucas was in private school he saw even less of him as he wasn't even here when he called home.

"How long are you home?" His son asked as they sat around the project he was working on; a model of some science institute.

"I don't know." But Lucas' break only lasted another two weeks. "I have to work tomorrow morning but I will be home for the rest of your school break."

"Why do you have to work tomorrow?" Lucas demanded, blue eyes were unhappy as he stared at him.

"I've got an assignment. I should be home by the time you are home from your trip to the museum." One of his friends from school had invited him and his mother had told him he was going to go even though Nathaniel had come home; Lucas had a hard time making friends.

"Why can't someone else do it? When are we going to spend time together? Are you and Mom going out?"

"I don't know." His son had always loved to ask questions and as he got older he seemed to want to be aware of everything going on around him. "But we will spend some time together as a family."

"What if your assignment doesn't go well? Could you die?"

Nathaniel sighed, he had been off on sick leave a few months when Lucas was five and the boy had never forgotten it. "That is a risk I take Lucas."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

The inky darkness pressed around them as Corporal Alicia Washington hovered around the meeting point. She wore a pair of cargo pants and a tank instead of her normal uniform. She had slung her gear belt around her waist with a few essentials in it but it felt strange to be without her kit.

She always slugged a full med kit along with her regular gear and was used to the weight of it. But it was not necessary today, she needed to blend in as she traveled to and from the site. Cairns and Regan tapped the comm in her ear and she growled at them to shut up until it was time to work.

Turning at a slight sound her CO stepped from the darkness. "Ready to go Wash?"

"Yes sir." She fell in step beside him as they headed down the street; just two service members out for an early morning jog.

"Got us Cairns?" He murmured into the comm, and they both heard the tap in their ears as the surveillance unit confirmed his question.

Both members of the surveillance unit were unhappy about being called back, and spending their morning crammed in a vid unit watching them. They wanted the job done and quickly.

She would give them a hard time later, they got to sit around but she had to shimmy through the air ducts of this building. But she wouldn't want their job today. As they approached the side of the building lit by street lamps she eyed the figure up the street; waiting for his signal.

When he gave it Taylor stopped, squatted and linked his fingers in front of him for her to step up into. Using the tip of her knife she popped the vent open and pushed it up on its hinge. Scrambling in she twisted around and offered her CO a hand; bracing herself in the duct.

Taylor took her hand and used her arm to haul himself up and over her body into the duct; Wash pulled the vent shut behind her. Her CO snarled as he crawled forward, his large frame did not fit well in the duct but at least it was well insulated; no one would hear the noise they were making.

"Alright, get us to the first gas lab on the plan." Thankfully gas study labs had to be specially equipped and the construction made them easily identifiable on the plan; there were eight to search.

They came to a corner and the duct was narrower than the main one. Taylor struggled to get himself into it, finally letting her go first. Her size made it easier for her to move quickly through the ductwork and following Cairns' instructions she left her CO behind heading to the first lab.

She was looking for a project codenamed 'Night's Wind', it went against the treaty the allied nations had made two years ago and apparently did not have government sanctioning. Wash was not naïve enough to think there weren't similar experiments under way but they would be highly confidential and properly sanctioned. This one was not, and not done to benefit their country.

"Hold Wash." The voice came through the comm as she prepared to enter the first lab. Looking through the vent she watched as a security patrol passed beneath her.

Then taking the left at the juncture she peered through the vent before jimmying it open. The lab was empty and conveniently she lowered herself through the vent onto a work station and turned to find something to identify what lab this was.

Her search turned up a project name and some information; she was not in the right lab. Informing their security team she headed back to the main duct and met up with her CO.

"If you head down to the next one I will follow you to the main junction." In truth they were lucky that air filtration vents were as large as they were.

But given the contamination of the atmosphere air filtration was an expensive and complicated undertaking. This time it helped them, every room of this building was vented, clean air pumped in. Slowly she navigated to the next lab, having to backtrack several times thanks to faulty direction from base.

Taylor was behind her and for once he had to let her take the lead; she couldn't deny that was somewhat satisfying. She checked the lab and lowered herself into it; the sooner they found it the sooner she could stop crawling around on her hands and knees.

She scanned the work station quickly, the project that came up was something to do with treating psychological stress and trauma but she noticed a chip and case sitting on the workstation. Inserting the chip she frowned the list of sub files came up but it was strange.

Focusing on it she began to read the list, some of the files were dates and times but there were others she couldn't decipher. Opening one of the files she scanned it, it was a recording, closing it she opened another until she found a report; and the project name.

Tapping her comm as she put the chip in the case. "I've got it."

Preparing to climb back into the vent a sound made her freeze as a man stepped into the doorway looking over his shoulder. Trapped she closed her hand tight around the chip, she wasn't going to get out clean but she was going to get out.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

He moved slowly but he followed and made his way to the lab she was working in; Wash wasn't alone. Easing to the edge of the vent he trained his weapon on the man standing inside the door; the man held a tray of pressure syringes.

He was a scientist, he shouldn't be too much of a problem, however if they had to kill him it would complicate things more than Taylor wanted. But his soldier's life was more important than that. He watched as the scientist stood frozen and Washington considered her options.

After a few seconds Wash took two steps back as the man raced to the desk and his hands scrambled over the desk. He turned on her as he saw her swallow something; a fierce grin on her face. As Wash charged and jumped up her hands caught on the edge of the duct, grabbing her forearm he started to pull her up.

But with a grunt her hand slipped and bearing her weight Taylor hauled her up; a look of shock on her face. Getting an arm around her middle he pulled her the rest of the way into the vent as Washington's hand slipped to her side; an auto injector was jabbed there.

Pulling it out he dropped it into the room, the scientist was out cold; Wash must have kicked him when he stabbed her. "Let's move Wash."

She nodded but brown eyes were glazed and where she had moved faster than him before now he was dragging her with him. He tapped his comm and ordered Guzman to close in; they needed to get Wash out quick and quiet.

As they made it to the exit he saw a cargo transo parked in front and nodded to Guz, all security cameras were on a loop and the vehicle blocked the view from the street. Hauling Wash through first he lowered his catatonic corporal down to her team mate; concern evident on his face as he caught her.

Guzman glanced at him before taking the wheel; Taylor needed to focus on his soldier. Washington lay limply on the floor where they had put her. Her hand had slipped up to her mouth and he frowned, she seemed to be struggling. Easing down beside her Taylor pulled her up to sit, the movement renewed her struggle.

"Easy Wash, I've got you." He realized what she was trying to do, and holding her jaw firmly he stuck a finger down her throat; he knew a few other methods.

But he went with the one she was trying and held her steady as she wretched and her body shook. She choked on the chip case before he took it; slipping the valuable data into his pocket. His comm crackled as his men tried to sort out what had happened as Taylor tried to decide what to do about Wash.

Going to the med clinic was not exactly a safe option, until they confirmed the mission a success it had never happened, and the CID had to make arrests; he couldn't explain what had happened to her. If he admitted what had happened the woman would become a science experiment and he might never get the promising young soldier back again. But he didn't know what she had been dosed with or what risks that posed to her health.

Suddenly his comm beeped an incoming message, and Philbrick's voice exploded in his ear. "You got him! You've got the data?"

"Yes sir." He hardly had time to answer before his CO continued.

"Bring it to my office, CID has already moved on it; they need the proof to back up the arrests." The man paused and then his tone changed. "And Taylor, I'm sorry you didn't get your top pick, Washington couldn't miss the cross country transpo yesterday. I'll brief you here."

"Yes, sir." He swallowed hard; if only that was true. Clicking off he stared at her for a long moment. "Guzman head to my unit."

….

With Washington safely tucked away he crossed the compound to his CO's office; uniform back in place. As he turned a corner he nearly collided with the Psychops director, stepping to the side he intended to move past to the office door when the man turned on him. "You. You're head of the specops unit on base. Your team broke into my lab."

"I doubt if any of my soldiers are sober yet; we've been off base eighteen months." He dismissed the man with a smirk, it would be true if he'd left them all to their leave. Not denying the accusation or making any direct statement about it.

But the angry man followed him back to his CO's office, he nodded to the man's assistant. "Has my request for a new tactical engineer come through?"

"Yes, the General would like to speak to you about two of the candidates. One will have to be recalled from a post in the remnant of Nigeria for it. I'll see if he has a few moments." It was not untrue, though not the purpose of his visit today; their unit had been operating a man down for nearly six months.

He settled into a chair to wait as if he had no where else to be. Privately he hoped Philbrick wasn't wasting time, he needed to get home before his wife decided to kill him. But the man didn't waste time, and Nathaniel stepped into the office and closed the door quickly.

"I've picked up a tail."

"Don't worry, CID is looking for him; I've just informed them of his location." Philbrick held out his hand and took the small device he held out. "It was good work, clean too even with the little incident."

"It's more than a little incident sir." He almost growled, it was serious enough that they were creating a cover for where Wash was during the operation.

"Not really, your security boy's did their job, only accusations are coming from a traitor; nothing backs him up. She was dosed with Night Wind, you've retrieved the data on it. It is not a new drug but it has not successfully been suspended for a gas delivery; she was given an injectable being used as a sample. It will be a miserable few days but she will be fine."

"What are the side effects?" Taylor wasn't sure he agreed, it had taken her down fast and he couldn't take her to the medical unit. Ayani would do the best she could to help her but his wife was not a medic.

"Paresthesia, memory loss, confusion, nausea and at worst convulsions. It has been known to last as long as five days for some, three is average; in the past it has been used to treat addiction. You did well to get her out of there; we're not handing her over for them to play with. I've had enough of scientists meddling in tactical operations." Philbrick met his eyes and Nathaniel saw fire there, apparently the director had already paid his CO a visit; and was not innocent in the matter.

"With all due respect sir, Washington held her own."

"Take care of her Taylor, I'll take care of psychops; as far as I know Washington headed off base to stay with family." The man dismissed him, Philbrick knew what he was thinking; the man knew his opinion on psychops. And read his reports, he owed the young woman his life; and those of most of the men in his unit on one occasion or another.

Leaving the compound he moved quickly across base to his unit. He was fully aware that his wife was furious with him, and when he found her in their guest room he saw her temper hadn't cooled. She had been tending Wash when she noticed him and her face set in a glare as she shooed him from the room. "Show some respect Nathaniel, she isn't decent."

"How is she?" He allowed Ayani to push him back, knowing she was upset to see her friend in such a state.

"Running a fever, and the poor thing is in pain; I hope it was worth whatever you had her do. Her grandmother called, while you were gone; asking when she is taking a transport home. You forget that while you are on assignment all the wives and families call me to see if I have news; if I know if their loved ones are safe. You've made me a liar." Ayani snarled as she ran a cloth under the tap.

He sighed, he knew his absences were not easy for her or Lucas but he tried hard not to let her see the consequences of it. She didn't see the memories that haunted him, or the pain his injuries caused him. He couldn't hide what had happened to Wash, he couldn't soften it or ease the pain the young woman was in. And this time Ayani was on the front line of it.

He stayed in the doorway of the guest room and watched Ayani wipe Washington's face with the cloth; the young woman lay on her side facing the wall. He wondered what the next few days would hold for her.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

She felt sick and weak, her body would not obey and she could not pull herself out of the fog in her head. The problem was she couldn't figure out why, it was like someone had aimed a sonic at her memory and shattered it; all she had were the jumbled shards.

Her legs twitched as muscles in them spasmed, Alicia tried to figure out what had happened to her. She was in an unfamiliar room, tucked into the bed like a child, her fatigues lay on a chair at the foot of the bed; she wore only her tank and underwear. Trying to roll herself out of the bed landed her on the floor, she looked up to find her CO's son standing over her; his eyes full of tears.

"Dad!" Lucas hollered, her head screamed with pain at the noise.

A moment later Taylor strode into the room, and she was fully humiliated her CO bundled her back into the bed as his son looked on nervously. And the rest of the day followed a similar routine leaving her thoroughly embarrassed and feeling ill for an entirely different way. It was as though she was trapped within her own body.

She knew the drug was passing through her system and it would pass but it left her weak and exhausted. The next morning Alicia was beginning to feel a little better but her body was still unreliable, Ayani sat near her trying to rub the pains racing through her legs. It seemed the worst of it had passed, but if her body would not recover her career was over and that scared her more than anything.

This drug hadn't been tested yet, no one really knew what it would do, and while Taylor had kept her from being a lab rat she saw it in his face that he didn't know if she would recover either. Ayani had told her that he had been called to base early in the morning and had yet to return. She couldn't help but wonder if his decision to keep her from the scientists would be overruled.

The military was the only life she had, the only future she had and the good and bad Alicia took it because it was a part of path she had chosen. In reality she knew she could loose it at any moment, but with the route she had chosen she didn't expect to survive the loss. She didn't want it to end like this.

Time dragged as she waited, trying to be interested in Lucas' science projects and his stories from school, smiling as Ayani talked about the base gossip and eligible men; her CO's wife always thought she should retire and marry. She wanted to know the verdict of the meeting this morning and escape the awkwardness of being in her CO's home.

…

The scientist had died in custody, Nathaniel kept his face straight as he was informed. The case would be investigated by CID but the belief was his employers had gotten to him before he could be properly interrogated; however some of his research had been recovered. Nathaniel Taylor wasn't sure whether he believed that story or not, but it would be the report that would be filed and if or when the 'employer 'was found he doubted he would hear of it. The mission was completed and it was time for the brass to close ranks around the issue; calling the problem solved.

Philbrick was already discussing the next orders that would follow the unit's leave. However, as he left he noticed something odd; he had picked up a tail somewhere between command and the transit station. Getting off two stations before normal he pulled his rebreather down and stepped into the crowd of soldiers heading off shift; the uniform effectively making him disappear.

He knew his address would be easy enough to find if the tail was military, however when he scoped out his home before approaching and found it clear he wondered whether it was. Stepping inside he secured the door and crossed into the living room to pull the privacy screen that would prevent any clear scans of that room; and moved through the house doing it in each room.

"Nathaniel what is going on?" Ayani demanded as he stepped into Lucas' room.

"Nothing, just a precaution." He did not need his wife to become hysterical for no reason. Ayani was sheltered from a lot of things on the base. "How is Washington?"

"Confused, some of they symptoms are lingering. I really think we should take her to the clinic; it hasn't passed completely." Ayani fretted.

"No. As far as the military is concerned this never happened Ayani; Wash headed home as soon as I gave her leave. It is best that way." His CO was aware of the situation no matter what reports he filed; that was the nature of war games.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

She wanted to get out of here, and he couldn't blame her. His soldier and wife couldn't be much more different and while they got along Ayani was tending the younger woman like she did Lucas; and Washington was bristling under it. He noticed her rubbing her hands and feet, he knew she was afraid that the side effects would not pass completely; it was on his mind too. Washington was a fine medic and sniper, it would be a shame to see her walk on a medical.

And it would eat at him that it had been an internal fishing trip that did it. He spent the day working on a model with Lucas, trying to focus on the project his son was so interested in but Wash had her plex from her bag and he had a feeling she was doing her own research.

He was fully aware that while they worked well together he made her somewhat nervous here; she didn't seem to like the informality. But until this was over she was staying here, she might not be a man but she was one of his. No matter how this played out she wasn't on her own.

And for now, she was out of sight and he kept his family close; giving CID time to clean things up. He wasn't taking any of it at face value and after Lucas went to bed he took some time to research the psych ops division. Two days later Wash got on a shuttle to head home for two weeks before they resumed training and prepared for the next deployment. But his guard was up, and he warned his soldier to watch her back, the young woman had been critical to his unit before but now she was essential; they both knew there was still a rat somewhere in the ranks.

The experimental military branches were taking a more active role in global military strategy; they had several miserable run ins with them before this. He knew many units had. What looked good in simulation did not always work in the field. And the politically motivated plans put soldier's lives on the line, clearly there needed to be a bit more oversight in the newer military divisions. But since the water wars that finally ended only two decades ago it seemed that politics and power were dictated by resources and wealth. The wealthy bought the elections, and the puppets put in power dictated military strategy to grab for whatever resources lay beyond their borders.

Anymore it seemed that everyone had a price, and some had enough money to find a traitor in almost any position. It was corruption that had necessitated the war game that risked his unit's lives, and with the mole dead would they ever know how far the rot reached within their own ranks? Or who was paying for the information and for what purpose?

A few years later it was his unit selected for what was thought to be a suicide mission, with everything to lose they followed their orders into a new world and carved out a life. And after they defied the odds the true rat finally revealed himself; a man Taylor once counted a friend forced him to choose between orders and hope for a second chance. It was a new war game, and losing was not an option.


End file.
